The Quigleys at their best
by Caitlyn-4479
Summary: A 4 part series on more adventures of the Quigleys. If you've never read the book, read this anyway! R&R please
1. Lucy's Wish

THE QUIGLEYS

At their best!

In an ordinary city,

In an ordinary street,

In an ordinary house,

Live an ordinary family

Called… THE QUIGLEYS.

Lucy only wants a kitten for her birthday.

Will only wants to finish his science project in peace.

Dad only wants a good night's sleep.

Mum only wants a break in her day.

Lucy's wish

It was the beginning of spring, and it was getting closer and closer to Lucy's birthday. Lucy was so excited she couldn't contain herself. She told everyone on a daily basis.

"Guess what, Will." She would say.

"What?" Will asked, often looking up from _the beano._

"I'm turning six in 22 days!" Lucy would squeal with delight. Will would just ignore her.

She told all her friends at school every day. She told her friends at Ballet every Wednesday. She marked off the days on her calendar every morning, knowing that it was one day closer to the big day.

One day, 20 days to Lucy's birthday, as she often reminded them, the family were sitting down to dinner. As they were finishing up, mum and dad asked Lucy what she wanted. Lucy smiled and ran to her room, coming back with a piece of paper.

Lucy had made a list of all the things she wanted. Ever since she started counting down the days (154) she would occasionally write down what she wanted. The list extended to both sides of the paper, with various Barbie products, dream play houses, costumes she saw in catalogues, dolls, a diary, and a new skipping rope that counts the number of times you skip.

"Is this _all _you want, poodle?" Dad asked after gawking at the list.

"Yes." Lucy said. "Unless I think of any more."

Mum and dad looked at each other, then back at the list, then back at each other.

"This is a very long list, Lucy." Mum said, beginning to clear the table.

"I know that." Lucy said. She thought about this. "But I do have big handwriting, so it really isn't that much."

"This is enough stuff to sink a battleship!" Dad exclaimed. He left the table looking distracted.

"Why don't you just ask for one big thing?" Will asked.

Lucy looked at her list. "Would they rather one big thing than lots of little things?" Lucy pondered out loud.

"Well, they got me my budgies. Maybe if you ask for a playhouse or something you'll get it."

Lucy remembered when Will wanted a bird. He left clues around the house to get what he wanted without bother. But Lucy didn't know what 'big thing' she would ask for. The new Barbie dream house? A cubby? A swimming pool?

Lucy once wanted a kitten the year before. But then, with the help of Will, the new family rule was enforced. "No pets". Lucy didn't complain much back then but now she was thinking once again of a kitten. She had always wanted a kitten. They were small and cuddly and soft, and not the least bit scary, like next doors ferocious dog, Fathom.

That night in bed Lucy stayed up thinking about a kitten. She thought about what it would be like to have one. She would cuddle up in bed with it and it would keep her warm during winter. She would feed it every morning before school and every night before dinner. She would play with it and love it and it would be her best friend. The more Lucy thought about it, the more she liked it, and the more courage she gained to ask mum and dad. She slept that night dreaming of playing with her new best friend.

The next morning Lucy and Will were driven to school by their mum. When she parked the car outside the entrance Will left straight away, saying he had to meet Timothy at the canteen this morning. Lucy was reluctant to leave though.

"Have fun at school." Mum said. But Lucy didn't budge.

"Are you going to school?" Mum asked.

Lucy tried to muster up the words. "Mum, I've decided I only want one thing for my birthday."

"Oh? And what's that?"

"A kitten." Lucy said, with satisfaction. She opened the car door and said "Bye!" before shutting it again and running into the school, with a big smile on her face. Mum was left in the car, rather dumbstruck.

Lucy told Pokehead about her wanting a kitten.

"I want it to be a girl." Lucy said at recess. "And then it could be friends with Fatbrain. He'd have someone to prowl around with."

"That's sounds good. What did your mum say?" Pokehead asked.

"Well, I kinda left before she could say anything, but she didn't look too shocked. I mean, if Will can have a pet, why can't I?"

But when Lucy got home from school her parents did not look too pleased.

"Lucy, we need to talk about your birthday." Dad started, when they sat down with Lucy in the living room.

"About your birthday present." Mum added.

"About my kitten?" Lucy asked eagerly.

"Yes. See, remember last year when you wanted a kitten?"

"Yes. But there's no pet ban anymore."

"Yes I know, but…"

"And Will got a pet for Christmas. 2, actually. And I'm only asking for one."

"Lucy, a kitten is a lot of responsibility. Are you sure you can handle a kitten?"

"Of course!"

"You'll have to change its litter." Dad said.

"I know."

"And you'll have to feed it."

"Yes, I know."

"And you'll have to wash it."

"Yes, I know all that! Stop going on!"

Mum and dad knew she was determined.

"Okay, poodle." Dad said. "You can have a kitten if you prove you're responsible enough."

Lucy agreed. Then she went up to her room, to think about how to be responsible.

Lucy thought about cleaning out the bird's cage. That would be responsible. But she didn't exactly know how to do that. She had to think of a plan to prove she was responsible.

That night when the kids went to bed, Lucy had thought of a plan.

"Will," Lucy said after the lights were out.

"Mm?" Will asked.

"I need your help with something." Lucy said. She explained what her big plan was, and Will agreed to help.

On Saturday, 17 days to Lucy's birthday, flyers went up around their street.

PET CARERS

FREE WASH FOR YOUR PET

FREE WALK FOR DOGS

Lucy had started a free pet business to show how responsible she was. She put up a sign out the front on their house, and an arrow to their backyard. On Saturday 3 people came by with a Chihuahua, a Persian cat and a guinea pig. Mum watched from the kitchen window as Will greeted the customers and Lucy washed the pets. Then, after asking permission, Will and Lucy took Tilly the Chihuahua for a walk around the block.

On Sunday 6 people came, with 3 dogs, 2 cats and a hamster. Lucky for Lucy all the dogs were small and manageable, because Lucy was afraid of big dogs.

The following Saturday, 10 days til Lucy's birthday, even more pets came in. Someone brought in a big German shepherd, which Lucy asked Will to take care of, and all the while mum and dad watched at how responsible their daughter was being.

The next Sunday, 2 days until Lucy's birthday, Lucy was getting very excited about Tuesday. She opened her business for the last time. A lot of people came in that day. 7 dogs, 5 cats, 2 hamsters and a rat. Even Pokehead brought Fatbrain around, and she helped Lucy wash him.

By 4 o'clock they were just about done, so Will said he would go inside. Lucy was packing up when her next door neighbour, Fred, came along with one of Lucy's biggest fears… Fathom.

"Hello, Lucy." Fred greeted. Fathom beared his teeth at Lucy and she kept her distance, but gave a warm smile to Fred. "Hello, Fred."

"I hope I'm not too late. I was hoping you could give Fathom a wash and walk while I went to pick up my son. Is that okay?" Fred asked.

Lucy looked at Fathom's grizzly mouth and stubby tail and rigid fur. He certainly didn't look friendly like Tilly the Chihuahua. But Lucy was determined to get her kitten.

"Of course! You can pick him up in about half an hour or so." Lucy said, and reluctantly stepped forward to grab the leash. Fathom barked and she jumped backwards.

"Thanks! Don't worry, Fathom wont bite." Fred said, handing her the leash. Lucy found that hard to believe. "I'll be back soon."

Lucy was left alone with Fathom. The hairs on his back arched up like a pyramid. Lucy tugged on the lead and pulled him over to the little pool Lucy used for a dog bath.

Fathom stood in the bath as Lucy hosed him down and started to rub in some doggie shampoo, which she bought with her allowance. She thought that would make her look even more responsible. She hosed him down again and let him run around the backyard to dry. When he calmed down the she leashed him up again, his fur and soft and smooth and Lucy was very proud. "That wasn't so bad, was it Fathom?" Lucy said. It was now time to walk him.

Lucy opened the backyard fence and Fathom bolted out with Lucy running behind her.

"Fathom, no!" Lucy shouted. She tugged hard on the leash and Fathom started running for the park. Lucy held on tight and took mighty leaps to keep up with Fathom. Soon they reached the park and Fathom was out of control. Lucy let go of the leash and fell to the ground, and Fathom kept on running until he ran onto the street. A car was coming his way and Lucy watched in horror as it crept closer to Fathom. The car screeched to a stop and Fathom stopped right in front of it, not seeming too fazed. Lucy got up and went to retrieve Fathom when she realized that Fred and his son were in that car.

That night Fred came by to explain to mum and dad what happened to Fathom.

"I know she didn't mean it," Fred was saying, "But I don't think she should've opened a business if she couldn't handle big dogs."

"I'm sorry this happened, Fred." Dad said, looking distracted. "I'm just glad Fathom is alright."

Lucy sat on the stairs and tucked her head through the railing, listening to Fred and dad talking about what happened. She felt terrible. She didn't like the looks of Tuesday, because letting a dog run onto the street was not responsible at all. She went up to her room and hid in between her bed and the wall, with doll pram over her head.

On Monday, 1 day to go, Lucy crossed off the last day on her calendar. Tomorrow was the big day. Her parents were understanding about Fathom, but Lucy didn't think she was getting a kitten tomorrow.

On Tuesday, the day of Lucy's birthday, Lucy woke up very early. Despite what had happened, she was excited. She was six today! She hopped out of bed, shook Will and shouted "Wake up!" and ran downstairs, because every birthday there were some presents wrapped on the kitchen table, and then after school some more before the birthday dinner.

Lucy ran to the table to find mum and dad already sitting at the table. "Happy birthday, Lucy!" They both said, and Lucy sat down in her seat. Will came down moments later, looking half asleep, and yawned the words "Happy birthday."

Lucy opened her morning presents. She got a Barbie and Kelly horse set, a unicorn book, a baby born and the skipping rope that counts the number of times you skip.

At school everyone in Lucy's class sang happy birthday, and Lucy wore the birthday badge Will had given her. All day people said "Happy birthday!" and "What did you get?" Lucy was having a great day.

When she got home she opened some more presents. She got a fairy costume, and new tutu for ballet, some new skirts and tops, a Barbie play house, a diary and a Shirley Barber book. Lucy was having so much fun she almost forgot that she wanted a kitten for her birthday.

During the birthday dinner, everyone sang happy birthday while Lucy smiled at the camera. Mum loved taking photos. The cake was chocolate, as Lucy had asked for. She blew out six purple candles and everyone cheered. "Hip hip hooray!"

Soon it got late and Lucy and Will were sent to bed. Lucy wondered why mum and dad were following her when she walked up the stairs. When she walked into her room though, there was something on her bed…

It was a little pink box, with a red ribbon tied over it. Lucy smiled at mum and dad and rushed over to it. She was about to open the lid when the box moved! Lucy's heart pounded and she looked over to her family with the biggest of smiles, and opened the box to reveal a small kitten.

It popped its head out of the box and looked up at Lucy. It was orange with a little pink nose and ears, and 2 whiskers and each side of her face. It meowed a tiny meow and Lucy gasped with pleasure and picked up the little bundle.

"Mum! Dad! Thank you!" Lucy cried and hugged the little kitten. It purred softly as mum said "What are you going to call her?"

Lucy thought about this for a little while. She looked at the little kitten. "Amber." She said, smiling.

That night, Lucy dreamt happy dreams while Amber slept right by her side, dreaming along side her.


	2. Will's Plan

Will's plan

It was a coolish Wednesday afternoon and Will was in class. Mr. Sheringham was teaching the kids about Dinosaurs. He taught them about T-rex's and Pterodactyls and carnivores and herbivores. He taught them about how different the Earth was back then, with exotic plants and lots of waterfalls and volcanos. It was a dangerous place back then, as dinosaurs that ate plants were never safe when there were carnivores around.

He set out an assignment for them that was due in a week. He said they could do anything they wanted that showed how dinosaurs lived. You could do a poster, a diorama, a book, or anything else you could think of.

Will thought of making a poster, with lots of pictures of dinosaurs and plants all over it. He liked that. When he got home he asked mum to buy him some blue poster paper.

When mum got home Will got straight to work in the back room. He got the scissors, glue, sticky tape and some coloured paper. Then he got his connectors out of his bag and started drawing his Tyrannosaurus-rex. He drew it with big teeth and short stubby arms. Then he wrote "Dinosaurs" in big yellow letters and stuck his dinosaur underneath it.

Will was just drawing his next dinosaur when he heard a 'meow'. Amber waltzed in and stood at the door, staring at Will.

Will continued drawing his dinosaur. It was a pterodactyl this time. I had large red wings and a long orange beak. When will was drawing the legs Amber walked onto his paper. Will didn't mind too much, but then Amber started patting her hand at his texta. She batted it back and forth and scribbled orange all over Will's dinosaur.

"Amber!" Will scowled and dropped the texta. He picked her up and plopped her outside the door, and shut it. But he didn't shut it all the way.

Will screwed up his dinosaur and started again.

A few hours later mum called out for tea. Will had nearly finished his poster. He stood up and looked at it, rather proud. Then he yelled "Coming!" And left the room. He walked past the laundry and saw Lucy piling cat food into Amber's bowl. It smelt horrid. Like salmon.

After tea Will started heading back to the back room to finish his science project. He was glad to finish it today, because then he wouldn't have to do anything for the rest of the week. But when he pushed the door open he mouth gaped open and he gawked at his work.

Amber had snuck in after eating, and had ripped his poster up. It was tears in every inch of the paper, and she had spilt the glue all over it and was smothered in it. When she saw Will she meowed loudly, as if to say, "Help! I'm stuck in your project!"

"Amber!!" Will shouted angrily. He ran over and picked up the now white kitten and took her to the laundry, and yelled out to Lucy to give her a bath. When Lucy came down she yelled at Will for letting Amber get so grubby. Will scowled and went back to his project.

He looked at all his hard work ruined. He couldn't start a new one now, it was too late. He picked it up and threw it all out, and packed up the other things. Then he went up to his room. On the way he saw Amber, now clean and still a bit wet. Will just scowled at her and kept going.

The next day at school, Mr. Sheringham asked the class what they had done. Most people said that they'd started making sculptures and dioramas and books, but Will said nothing. He just scowled at the thought of Amber ruining his project.

That night he started again, but this time he was going to make a book on the computer. Amber couldn't wreck a computer, could she?

He spent the whole afternoon typing and copying and pasting and printing his book, then he stapled it together and went up to his room, and put it on his bedside table. Then he completely shut the door so Amber couldn't get in.

After tea it was still there, completely in tact, and Will went to sleep happy.

The next morning Will put it in his bag to show his teacher what he had done. He plopped it in and went to breakfast.

When it was time to go Will picked up his schoolbag. It was heavy. When Will looked inside he saw Amber in it, looking up at him.

"Amber!!" He shouted. He thought he must've shouted it a million times by now. He picked her up and dropped her on the ground, and checked his bag. He pulled out his book. It was in tatters. Will couldn't believe it. After all the time he's spent on it, and it was ruined. Then he smelt something and looked into his bag.

"Eww…" Will said. "I'm not taking this bag today!"

On the way to school Lucy tried to convince Will that Amber was toilet trained, but Will just ignored her. That wasn't a little trickle in his bag. That was a big lump of disgustingness.

At school some of the kids brought what they'd made to school. Mark brought a diorama with lots of dinosaur figures inside it, Haley brought a big poster page with lots of facts about dinosaurs, and Jacob did a big thick book about T-rexs. But Will had nothing.

Will didn't do anything that afternoon. He had all weekend to decide what to do. He spent the rest of the day watching T.V. Once or twice Amber jumped up on the couch to cuddle up with someone, but Will just plopped her back on the ground. Then she meowed loudly and Will put her outside.

On Saturday Will ate breakfast and went back up to his room to look in his toy box. He found 5 little toy dinosaurs and 1 big T-rex in the bathroom. He was going to do a diorama.

He set up newspaper in the backroom in case he or a certain little furry one were to knock over the glue. Then he got a big cardboard box which had his new school shoes in it and glued green and blue paper inside it for the grass and sky. He got some grass from outside and stuck in on the bottom and stuck cotton wool on the top for clouds. Then he cut out a yellow sun and stuck it on. He got some blue tack and stuck in the toy dinosaurs and stood back. This was the best thing he'd made yet. He put it on top of the really tall cabinet, where Amber couldn't possibly get to, and packed up. Then he went over to Tim's to play.

While he was gone Amber had come into the back room. She saw the diorama on top of the cabinet. She was very good at climbing. First she jumped onto Lucy's play kitchen, then onto the drawers, then took a giant leap and landed on top of the cabinet, right next to the diorama. She hopped inside and played around for a little while, knocking over dinosaurs and pulling down the clouds, then when she got bored she jumped on top of the box. But when she did the box fell off the cabinet and crushed onto the floor. Amber didn't hurt herself, but got scared and ran out of the backroom.

When will returned he didn't bother to look in the backroom. He was certain that it would be safe on the cabinet. After dinner he saw Amber playing with her paw. It looked like something was stuck to her claws. Will knelt down to help her and pulled off some cotton wool. "Where did you get this, Amber?" Will asked. He looked at the cotton wool. It had a little bit of glue on it.

Oh no.

Will ran to the back room straight away and saw his 3rd project demolished on the floor.

"AMBER!!" He shouted so loud his tonsils showed. Everyone jumped and ran to see what was wrong. Lucy was first to see the look on Will's face. He looked like a tomato. She could've sworn there was steam coming out of his ears.

"What happened?" Dad asked.

"Look what Amber did!" Will yelled, pointing to the pile of cardboard and paper and toy dinosaurs.

"How do you know Amber did it?" Lucy asked.

"Because I found this on her paw. It's one of my clouds." Will protested, holding the small lump of white cotton. "This is the third time she's ruined my science project."

Amber then showed up at the door, sitting and staring at her family. She looked very innocent.

"Amber didn't mean it." Lucy defended.

Will scowled. He turned around and started to clean up the mess. Amber meowed quietly and started to walk daintily towards Will.

"No!" Will shouted, pointing to the door. Lucy went to pick her up and took her to her room.

On Sunday Will was too grumpy to start another project. He couldn't think of what to do so that Amber would not demolish it. He couldn't do a poster, or a book, or a diorama… what else _could _he do?

On Monday the teacher reminded everyone that the project was due on Thursday. Will gave a big huff and didn't say anything when Mr. Sheringham asked how they were all going. Even Tim had started his project, which normally he never even started.

That night Will wracked his brains over what he could do. He thought of a paper mache dinosaur but he knew Amber would wreck that too.

On Tuesday Will still couldn't think of anything. Whenever he started to think about it Amber would come into sight, and Will would just glare at her and say "This is all your fault."

On Wednesday though, Will decided to try another diorama. He had really loved his and wanted to try again. So he got a box, even bigger than the last, and started again.

He'd done the grass, sky, trees, sun and clouds the same as last time, but the dinosaurs looked rather small when he stuck them in. When he was about to give up, Amber came in. She slowly approached Will, as if she was wary of his yelling. Will was looking back at his work, wondering how he could get a bigger dinosaur. Just then, Amber snuck into the box.

"No!" Will said, about to grab her and send her on her way, but then he got a brilliant idea.

"Amber, you're a genius!" Will cried. He picked her up and gave her a cuddle, which he didn't do very often. She purred and rubbed her head against his chin.

On Thursday Will asked his mum to call the school on a very important matter. He also asked Lucy if it was okay, and she eventually said yes. Will had to carry a lot to school that day. His box and 2 bags.

"Okay class, today we're presenting our projects to the class. First up is Haley!"

Haley brought up her big poster and started reading it out.

"Did you know; Dinosaurs could be as big as aeroplanes and as small as chickens." Haley said.

"Well done, Haley. Next up is Jacob!"

Jacob brought up his big book of T-rexs, with lots of facts about them. But he couldn't read it all, or else they'd be there til midnight.

"Thank you, Jacob. Now it's Kate's turn!"

Kate did a diorama of a volcano, with lots of dinosaur figures at the bottom, and explained how there were lots of volcanoes back then.

"Well done, Kate. Will is up next!

Will stood up, carrying his diorama, and put it on the table. Then he went back and got another box, weaved with brown leather, and put in down beside him.

"My project is on the dangers of the prehistoric time." Will began. "As you can see, these small dinosaurs are herbivores, small and looking for food like small trees and grass. But it wasn't safe for these little guys for very long…" Then Will crouched down and opened the basket, pulling out… Amber!"

Most of the girls said "Awww!" Most of the guys said "Cool!" Then Will said, "She may look cute, but she's dangerous!"

Will put Amber down in the box and went on; "The carnivores, such as the Tyrannosaurus-rex, played by Amber here, made sure to give the smaller dinosaurs a hard time."

The class began to laugh as amber started batting the tiny dinosaur figures. "They ate the dinosaurs," Will said as she batted the last one down. "They stomped on the trees," just then Amber pulled down a twig stuck to the side of the box. "And they, on special occasion, pulled down the clouds!" Will joked as Amber pulled down a cloud and tried to get the glue off of her paw. The class cheered and Will bowed, Holding Amber up for all to see. Some of the kids started to look at their projects and think "I'm never gonna be able to top that!"

Back at home Will was carrying Amber wherever he went, stroking her head and listening to her purr. Lucy complained that Will was hogging her, but Will just said "I'm saying thank you to Amber for what she did."

Then Will set her down in the laundry and fed her a big bowl of her favourite treat – Krunchy Kat Flakes.

Amber purred with delight as Will said "You're the best kitty in the world."


	3. Tired Dad

Tired dad

"MIAOOOW!!!"

That was the sound the Quigley's heard every morning at about 5 am. Amber was always up and hungry, and she didn't like being locked in the laundry.

Will and Lucy sometimes slept through it. Even mum did too. But poor old Dad was always the one to get up and tend to Amber's needs. First he opened the door and let Amber run around the living room. Then he opened a can of cat food and held up his nose whilst fishing it into her bowl. While she was eating, if he needed to, dad would clean the litter tray. If there was anything in it. Sometimes dad would find little surprises in his slippers.

The same thing happened every morning. Lucy would get up and start opening a new can of cat food, and dad would say "I already fed the cat, poodle." Then she would leave it on the bench and dad had to wrap it in glad wrap and put it away again. Eventually dad started putting sticky notes on the cans in the morning. They would say "Done" or "Don't bother" or "Stop worrying about it".

One day mum told dad she was invited to go away with her friends for the weekend. Dad said it was fine, but he was very tired from the last few days of getting up early and going to bed late.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Mum said for the 50th time before leaving on Friday night.

"Of course! You have a good time." Dad said.

"Bye mum!" Lucy and Will called when mum left in her friend's car. When they were out of site, Will and Lucy ran inside.

When mum was away, Will and Lucy went a big hyper. Mum always told them to do their chores or to clean their rooms. Dad was always too busy to tell them off for making noise or for trying to make fondue chocolate, even though they didn't know how. So Will and Lucy took the time to do what they wanted. Still following the family rules, of course. They weren't being naughty. They were making use of their mother-free-time.

First Will got out a bag of popcorn. Then Lucy got all the pillows and duvets and sprawled them across the living room floor. Then Will got a selection of favourite DVD's, have of them Will's and half of them Lucy's, and lay them in front of the T.V. so they could choose which one to watch first.

When dad walked in he told them not to stay up too late, and to remember to put the cat in the laundry when it wanted to. He was determined to go to bed early tonight.

When dad was in bed he listened to Will and Lucy laughing at T.V. and Amber meowing at the laundry door. He was going to get up but he decided Amber would start interrupting their movie soon, and tried to go to sleep.

An hour later the T.V. seemed to have gotten louder and the kids laughing wilder. Dad wished he had moved now, because in a small house small noises were turned into big ones and big ones were turned into HUMONGOUS ones.

Dad got up and appeared at the top of the stairs. Will and Lucy turned around and saw dad, looking very zombie-like and tired.

"Can you turn it down a bit?" Dad asked.

"Then we wont be able to hear it!" Will scowled.

"Can you at least put the cat in bed then?"

"She's fine right here." Lucy said, pointing to a rather quite Amber in her lap.

"Well, don't laugh so loud, ok? Daddy's trying to sleep." Dad warned. Will and Lucy nodded and turned to see that the end credits were scrolling across the screen.

"Aw, dad!!" They both yelled.

"Shhh!" He said. He was getting grumpy. "It's called a rewind button!" Then he disappeared and went back to bed.

Will and Lucy decided to watch a scary movie. They got some more popcorn, much to dad's dismay. He was just about to go to sleep when all of a sudden POP! POP! POP!

Dad pulled the pillow over his head and sighed. 20 minutes later he was just dosing off when he heard Will and Lucy scream.

"AHHH!!"

Dad got up with a shock, wide-eyed and mouth open, and ran downstairs. When he made it downstairs he found Will and Lucy hiding behind their pillows, and when they turned to see dad they screamed again. In the night and after seeing the movie, dad looked scary.

Amber got scared from the screaming. "MIAOOOWWW!!" She cried and ran around the house, all over, until she felt safest behind the couch. Dad sighed and said "Please kids, no screaming! I thought you were in trouble!"

"You can blame Will. _He _wanted to watch this."

"Hey, you said you weren't scared!" Will objected.

Dad moaned a tired moan and said "Please just be quite." And went up to bed.

Dad flopped into bed, very tired. He started snoring. He'd fallen asleep!

"MIAOOOWW!!" Amber cried at 5 am. Just on time, dad thought. He was hoping that Amber would have slept longer if she stayed up longer, but he was wrong. He got up and began walking down the stairs. Will and Lucy were still down in the living room, asleep in their pile of bedding. The T.V. was still on, with the main menu of a movie they must've watched.

Then dad smelt something. Something very unpleasant. He looked over to the laundry. The door was closed. Then he looked over to Amber, staring at him with wide eyes. "Wait a minute…" Dad said out loud. "What are you doing out here, Amber??" He took another step. It was very lucky he was wearing socks. He's just stepped in cat poo.

"Oh, Amber!" Dad cried, hopping over to the laundry and taking his sock off. Will and Lucy didn't let Amber in bed last night. He opened the laundry door and Amber scurried inside, and dad fed her favourite treat, Krunchy Kat Flakes, because Amber had to poop on the carpet.

When Will and Lucy woke up, it was about 9 o'clock. Dad had cleaned up the cat poo, the popcorn and turned off the T.V., and yawned.

Will and Lucy got their favourite, toast with chocolate spread, because it was the weekend.

"What should we do today, Will?" Lucy asked while watching the cartoons.

"Hmm… why don't we go to the park or something?" Will said. Will and Lucy liked going to the park. It was just 2 blocks away and was very big, and people were there all the time, including their friends. There was a small playground with swings and sandpits that Lucy usually played in, and a big playground with a huge tunnel slide that Will usually went on.

They both smiled at each other and yelled "Dad!"

Then dad came in looking very tired.

"Why didn't you let the cat in the laundry last night?" He asked, looking furiously worn out.

Will and Lucy looked at each other. Lucy said "Upsidaisy!" and Will said "So that's what the smell was."

Dad groaned angrily and was about to leave when Will said "Can we go to the park today?"

Dad was about to say no, but with the kids out of the house, he could get some rest.

"Okay, but if you're there on your own, come straight home." Dad warned.

Will and Lucy got dressed, and Lucy had a crack at doing her own hair. It looked terrible, so she just brushed it and wore it out. Then they called out "Bye!" and left.

Dad sighed and flopped onto the couch. He sighed and started to doze off.

Will and Lucy arrived at the park. All their friends were there. Elizabeth, Timothy and Pokehead were there, and so were Ellie, Moo, and Gilly, Lucy's friends. Mark, Jacob and Andrew were also there to play with Will.

They spent about an hour there, playing on the swings and the slides and the monkey bars. But then they got hungry. On Sunday's dad cooked bacon and eggs for lunch for the kids, so Will and Lucy left, saying they would come back later.

Will and Lucy came in the door, running around yelling, "Dad! Lunch time!!" Which startled dad a lot. He woke up with a snort and a yawn and said "Already?" He seemed in a better mood.

Dad got out the pan while the kids packed up the duvets and pillows and empty bowls of unpopped corn. Dad was still tired though. He nearly burnt the bacon, he popped the egg yolk, and he forgot to pop down the toast.

Will and Lucy stared at their half cooked, over cooked lunch. Dad said he was sorry and went back to the couch to rest.

After lunch Will and Lucy decided to stay home and play forts. Will set his fort up in the back room, while Lucy set hers up in the living room.

"Dad, get up! I need the couch to build my fort!" Lucy shouted. Dad groaned and went up to his room, and tried to sleep there. Then he remembered he had to go shopping.

When dad got home from shopping, not able to find everything he needed, he found the house to be in a very big mess. He was so tired though, that he just sighed and began putting the shopping away.

That night for tea, dad made his cauliflower cheese.

Lucy didn't like dad's cauliflower cheese. She always jus stared at it. Tonight Will did the same thing. Usually he liked it, but tonight dad had made a horrible pile of cauliflower cheese.

Later on Dad warned the kids to go to bed early tonight. The kids did not like this.

"But mum isn't home til tomorrow! We never have any late nights when mum's here!" Lucy protested.

"Yeah! And you said we would have fun while mum was away! Going to bed early isn't fun." Will added.

Dad sighed. "Okay, you can stay up til 11. But you have to go to bed! I'm really tired."

The kids said okay, and dad went to bed.

Will and Lucy made a lot of noise. By 9 o'clock dad couldn't take it anymore. He came down and took them both straight to bed.

In bed, Will and Lucy scowled so hard they looked at old people. This almost amused dad, but he was too mad and tired to smile.

"But dad!!" Will complained.

"No." Dad said calmly, tucking him in.

"We won't yell anymore." Lucy whined.

"No." Dad said firmly.

"Please, dad!" Will and Lucy said in unison, as if rehearsed.

"No." Dad said, in a final matter. He flicked the switch and shut the door.

Will and Lucy were not tired. They got up when they heard dad shut his bedroom door and they went down to get a drink. But then they got hungry. Dad heard them in the kitchen and came down. Will and Lucy crouched under the bench so he couldn't find them.

Dad came around behind the bench and saw them. The got up and marched straight up to bed, without saying anything. When they heard dad go back to bed though, they got up again, and dad heard them again.

When dad came up he looked so tired it wasn't funny. He had big lines under his eyes and they were all droopy. He mumbled the words "Go back to bed…" and turned around himself. Will and Lucy had never seen him like this.

The 2 of them went back to bed.

"Will," Lucy called when the lights were out.

"Yeah?" Will asked.

"I feel sorry for dad."

"Why?"

"See how tired he looked?"

"Yeah, but he's always tired."

"Will, dad's been extra tired lately. He gets up at 5 every morning to feed Amber."

"What? He does not. I always hear the cat."

"No you don't, you sleep straight through it. He leaves sticky notes on the cat food so I don't feed her twice."

Lucy and Will thought about this.

"I'm going to feed Amber from now on." Lucy said.

"Good idea. What else makes dad tired?" Will asked.

"Dad cleans up all the time." Lucy said.

"Then I'll clean up for him when he looks tired." Will said.

Will and Lucy looked very pleased with themselves, and went to sleep.

Dad woke up at 10am. Which was strange, because usually he woke at 5. He got up and felt rather refreshed. He trotted down the stairs to find mum already home, eating morning tea while watching sunrise.

"Morning, dear!" Mum called when she heard him. "You slept in. Were you tired?"

"I was." Dad said, confused. He saw Amber and wondered if she'd been fed. He went over to the pantry and found a sticky note on the cat food. "Amber is alredy fed!" Dad smiled and turned around to find that the house was spotless.

"Did you clean the house?" Dad asked.

"No. I came home to this. I thought you did it." Mum called from the living room.

Dad pondered this thought, then saw another sticky note on the bench.

"I cleaned up for you!" in Will's writing. Dad was very pleased and hardly tired anymore.

When Will and Lucy got home from school their dad was home, looking much nicer and happier, with no lines under his eyes. He smiled and said, "Kids, thanks for what you did this morning."

"Oh, I'll feed Amber every morning, dad!" Lucy said.

"And I'll clean up when you ask from now on." Will added.

"I'm so proud of you all!" Dad exclaimed, and then pulled out some rather colourful looking cards.

"… So, as a special treat I got us tickets to the circus tonight!"

"Wow!" They both said in unison.

That night at the circus, the Quigley's had a great time together, and Will and Lucy learned that being nice really played off!


	4. Busy Mum

Busy Mum

Mum woke up early on Wednesday morning. She knew she was in for a big day.

Today mum had to do a lot. First she had to go grocery shopping, then she had to go to Parkside primary school to help Lucy's class with the reading. Then she had to get her hair appointment (which was the only time during the day she'd get to sit down.) After picking up Will and Lucy from school mum had to take Lucy home to get changed for ballet. While she did that mum had to take Will to his football practice. Then she'd come home and take Lucy to Ballet, and stay to watch. Half-way through the lesson mum had to go pick up Will and take him straight to his clarinet lesson, then get back in time to pick up Lucy. When all that was done she had to cook tea for the family, which was another problem because no one seemed to like the same thing.

Mum was ready to face the day. She had laid out Lucy and Will's clothes for the day, even Lucy's leotard and tights. She had set out the cereal boxes and her shopping list on the bench. She got dressed and ready straight away and went to wake up the kids, which was quite a task.

Mum went in and opened the curtains, and shook the 2 sleepy heads.

"Wake up, guys! We have a busy day ahead of us!"

Will moaned and held on tight to his duvet. Lucy didn't even wake up.

"Come on, Poodle!" mum said, pulling away the duvet. Lucy woke up too late to pull the duvet back over her, so she got up and started to get dressed. Will refused to budge.

"Will, I won't say it again." Mum warned. Will and Lucy didn't like it when mum yelled in the morning. Will yawned and climbed down the ladder, nearly falling and flopping onto the carpet.

"I'm so tired!" Will moaned in a mumble.

"You'll be awake after breakfast." Mum said.

But they weren't awake after breakfast. Will nearly dropped his head in the cereal bowl. But mum was still getting ready for her busy day. She did Lucy's hair, made the sandwiches and waited for

the kids to get ready.

"Hurry up! We'll be late!" Mum called upstairs. Will was in the bathroom and Lucy had decided to watch T.V. instead of brushing her teeth.

"Lucy, are you ready?" Mum asked.

Lucy wasn't listening.

"Lucy!"

"Huh?" Lucy said. "In a minute." She didn't know what she had to do in a minute.

"Will!" Mum called.

"Coming!" Will shouted. 5 minutes later he hadn't come down.

"Will, Lucy need to brush her teeth! Hurry up! We should have left by now!" Mum yelled. Will came down 2 minutes later and Lucy ran upstairs to do a quick brush.

"What were you doing, Will?" Mum asked.

Will was practicing his smile. If he smiled in just the right way, usually mum forgave him. He tried it now, but either he smiled wonky or she hadn't looked.

"Will?"

He stopped smiling. "Not much."

Lucy came running down the stairs. "Finished!"

"That wasn't a very good job, Lucy. Oh, we're late! Let's go!"

They all piled into the car and mum drove them to school. They got stopped at all the lights and at the last lot they heard the first bell.

"Mum, we'll get in trouble!" Lucy whined.

"No, you won't. It'll be fine." Mum reassured, but the lights weren't budging and mum was getting frustrated.

Finally they changed and mum drove at top speed, but there were no parking spots left. Mum had to park far away from the school, and she watched as Will and Lucy ran into the school, with their school bas flopping behind them.

Mum sighed and reversed out to go straight to the shopping centre. By the time she got there it had started to shower.

Mum was inside the shopping centre, tired already and wet. She got to the market and reached into her pocket.

"Shoot!" She said. "I forgot the shopping list!"

Mum got home with all the wrong stuff. She checked her list. Lucy had asked for more pickles in her sandwich, but mum bought cucumber. Will asked for peanut butter spread for breakfast, but mum bought vegemite. Dad had asked for some mushrooms, but mum bought bean shoots. And mum completely forgot to buy bread! How could she forget the bread?

"Looks like fruit for lunch tomorrow." Mum sighed.

She looked at the clock. It was 11 o'clock.

Mum was late for Lucy's reading class!

Mum grabbed her keys and raced outside, jumping into the car and racing back to the school, yet again stopped by all the lights.

When mum walked into Lucy's classroom, they were already reading. The teacher looked up and smiled, and beckoned her to sit over in the corner.

One at a time mum read to the kids in Lucy's class. She read "Buzz! Said the bee" to Ellie, "I hate my bow" to Gilly, and "We just moved!" to Lucy.

When Mum finished and went home, grabbed a banana for lunch and went to her hairdresser's, "Supercuts." She had a friend there called Phyllis who always cut her hair. She knew just how mum liked it.

Mum drove to Supercuts 10 minutes late. Phyllis wasn't there. She must've been sick, mum thought. Another lady was doing someone's hair. Mum sat there for another 20 minutes before she got her hair cut.

"Hey darling, I'm Mary." Mary greeted. "You have an appointment for 1 o'clock? Oh my, that was half an hour ago! Let's get you seated."

Mum sat in the chair.

"So, what are you after today, darl?" Mary asked, taking mums hair out.

Mum didn't know if Mary could do what mum wanted. She explained it to her that she wanted a trim and redye, and tried to explain how to do it.

"Okay darl, just sit back."

45 minutes later mum's hair was done. It wasn't what mum wanted. It was VERY red and a tad too short, and mum didn't like it at all. But she had to make do.

"That'll be $120, darl." Mary said. Mum handed over the money and looked back at the mirror. Would the kids recognise her?

"See you later, darl." Mary waved goodbye.

Mum looked at the clock in the car. It was 5 to 3. Mum had to pick up Will and Lucy. She definitely wasn't going to get a good spot.

Mum was stopped at the lights when she heard the school bell. By the time she crossed over she could see Will and Lucy looking around for her, but there was no room to park. Mum drove past them so they could see, and parked up further.

Will and Lucy walked after the car and hopped in when it stopped, and stared at mum.

"… You look nice, mum." Lucy said, not to be rude.

"Is that the new phase?" Will asked.

"No. Phyllis didn't do my hair today. Mary did it. And she did it all wrong." Mum whined. She started sounding like Lucy.

"At least she wasn't late." Will said. "… much."

Mum said nothing all the way home. When they arrived Lucy ran in to get changed and Will ran to get his footy gear. Mum had laid it out this morning.

Will came back half dressed in footy gear and jumped in the car.

Meanwhile Lucy was getting changed into her ballet outfit.

Mum parked near the oval and said goodbye to Will, and was about to reverse out when one of the mums came up to her. Mum rolled down the window. It was Teresa Green. She was the most talkative mum and would never stop going on.

"Hi! How are you? How's the family? Wow! I like your hair, did you do it yourself?"

Back at home Lucy was dressed and ready to go. First she practiced her dancing in the living room. Then she sat on the couch looking at the clock. Mum was late… again!

"Sorry Teresa, but I have to go pick up-" Mum tried for the fifth time.

"Lucy! How is Lucy going? Is she still doing Ballet?" Teresa asked.

"Well actually, I was about to go and take her there-"

"Yes, Gilly was thinking of starting ballet. Is it good there?"

Mum was stuck. Eventually she revved up the engine and yelled "Gotta run!" and drove away, leaving Teresa to run to another mum and gossip.

"Mum, we're gonna be late!!" Lucy cried. "What were you doing?"

Mum walked in looking tired, and said, "Come on, before we're any later!"

By the time they got to Lucy's ballet class, they had started. Mum sat down with the other mums and sighed. Finally I get to sit down, she thought.

Mum was so tired, she completely forgot about Will's clarinet lesson. When Will's football game finished, Will was the only one left, sitting on the field and picking up the grass. Mum was late again.

Mum looked up at the clock. Oh no! Mum got up and left, without realising that dance class finished in 10 minutes.

When mum got there, Will did not look happy. He was tired and muddy and when mum parked the car he hopped in and said nothing.

"I'm sorry, Will…" Mum said.

"You've been very late today." Will mumbled.

"I know. Let's take you home."

Mum drove Will home and was about to flop on the couch when she saw the time. "Lucy!" She said, and rushed out the door again, leaving Will there on his own.

When mum got there, Lucy was sitting in the building with the dance teacher. She looked cross.

"Lucy! I'm sorry for being late." Mum said when she opened the door. "Thanks for looking after her."

"Oh, no worries!" Miss Paula said.

"Let's go home, Poodle." Mum said nicely, but Lucy looked tired and angry.

When Lucy got home, dad still wasn't home. Will said he called and said he was stuck in traffic and would be late.

Mum went up to her room. Will and Lucy watched T.V. until they were peckish.

"Mum, I'm hungry!!" Will called out.

"What's for tea, mum?" Lucy shouted.

There was no reply.

Will and Lucy went up the stairs and saw that mum was asleep in bed.

"What do we do, Will? Mum's too tired to cook tea." Lucy asked, walking back down the stairs.

"I dunno."

"Mum looked very tired, didn't she Will? I think she had a rotten day."

"Me too." Said Will, after thinking about this. He was mad at mum before, but he knew how grumpy he got when he had a rotten day.

"Maybe we should cook dinner for her?" Lucy asked.

"What would we cook?" Will asked.

They went to the kitchen and looked in the fridge.

"There's some ham here." Will said.

"And lots of eggs." Lucy added.

"Maybe we could make omelettes for mum?" Will asked.

Lucy nodded and smiled. She loved omelettes. Will didn't fancy them too much, but it was the only thing he could think of.

Will sprayed the pan and turned the stove on. He was very careful and put the handle facing the bench, like he had been taught to. Lucy cracked the eggs and Will chopped up the ham. They both helped mix it together and flip it.

They poured mum some glasses of wine, like they did on mothers day, and Lucy went out and picked and yellow flower and put it in a cup.

"That's a weed, Lucy." Will told her.

"Weed's are green. This is a flower!" Lucy defended.

Will sighed and said it would do, and they took their dinner up to mum's room.

They turned on the light and mum sat up. She was only half asleep, or she must've smelt the omelette Lucy burnt earlier. She rubbed her eyes and looked at the tray placed in front of her.

"Dinner is served!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Let's eat!" Will said.

"What's all this?" Mum asked.

"We knew how tired you were after your rotten day." Lucy started.

"So we cooked you dinner!" Will added, with omelette in his gob.

"Oh, you shouldn't have! Thank you!" Mum said. They all dug in to the omelettes. Mum said it felt like breakfast.

Dad came in, tired and hungry. He could smell eggs, and followed the smell. When he walked into his room, he found Lucy and Will scoffing their faces and mum smelling the weed Lucy picked.

At first dad was welcomed by the family. He smiled and sat down on the bed too. Then he turned to mum and said "What happened to your hair?"

THE END


End file.
